The present invention generally relates to processing techniques for a server handling client/server traffic and communications. More specifically, the present invention utilizes persistent threads and an independent task queue to improve the efficiency of servers. This invention is particularly suitable for use with servers handling client/server traffic and communications in a computer network such as the Internet.
The predominant way to access information on the Internet is through the use of a browser. A browser is a software program that allows a web surfer to view web pages accessible on the Internet. In order to properly display a web page on a computer screen, the underlying script which represents the web page must be written in a language that can be interpreted by the browser. Hypertext languages, which may include Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), Extended Markup Language (XML), or other forms of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), are often used to accomplish this purpose. Put in simplified terms, the browser interprets a hypertext script, which essentially contains text and formatting commands, and displays the web page on the screen in accordance with those text and formatting commands. The web page, as displayed, may or may not contain any hypertext links to other web pages.
Many web users currently find a large number of existing web pages to be lacking in hyperlinks. Therefore, in addition to retrieving the hypertext script for a desired web page, it would be desirable to provide the capability to modify the original hypertext script to offer additional hyperlinks and functionality. One such invention which provides the foregoing desired capability is disclosed in the co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/021,331. As disclosed therein, that particular invention is a method and apparatus for automatically providing additional hypertext anchor codes and destination addresses for a pre-existing web page. That invention, among other things, modifies the underlying hypertext script to produce an annotated version of the pre-existing web page that includes additional hypertext links and other functionality.
Since web pages are retrieved and viewed by web users during every second of every day at an astronomical rate, the task of generating an annotated web page each time a web page is accessed could become quite burdensome. From an efficiency standpoint, it is more efficient to retain a copy of the annotated web page for subsequent use. Otherwise, every time an annotation request is received from an user, regardless of the request frequency, all the processing steps have to be repeated starting from retrieving the original web page from the content server to producing the annotated web page. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system that can efficiently process and handle annotation requests.
By processing and handling the annotation requests in a more efficient manner, valuable time can be saved thereby allowing the web users to view their desired web pages more quickly.
Furthermore, under current practice, a web user usually subscribes for Internet access and other subscription services through an Internet service provider (“ISP”). FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram showing a conventional configuration for Internet access. The ISP 12 acts as a gateway to allow a web user using a browser residing on a user computer 10 to access the Internet 14. When access to the Internet is needed, the web user using the user computer 10 contacts the ISP 12 to have the ISP 12 assign a temporarily IP address to the user computer 10. With the assigned IP address, the user computer 10 is then able to communicate with other computers on the Internet. For example, if a web user desires to retrieve a particular web page, the user computer 10 contacts the server 16 where the desired web page is located and the pertinent hypertext script for that web page is retrieved to the web user's browser on the user computer 10 to allow that web page to be displayed.
Since the use of a browser is the most preferred way to access information on the Internet, it would be safe to conclude that a high percentage of this Internet communication traffic is attributable to transfers of hypertext information. With the use of the Internet increasingly growing more popular among the general public, heavy Internet communication traffic is becoming a significant issue in connection with managing and hosting web servers. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide a system that can help reduce Internet communication traffic during the processing of annotation requests.
In addition, there is a constant need to improve the efficiency of a server servicing requests from a client over a computer network. An operating system running behind a server generally uses a pool of threads to control the number of executable requests. Such threads are “spawned” or generated by the server when a request requires execution and are terminated upon a request's completion. A thread represents an authorization without which a particular request cannot be executed by the server. The thread is a signal given by the operating system to ensure that there are sufficient resources from the system to allow a request to be executed.
Typically, a thread is assigned to a request exclusively until the request reaches its conclusion. Such exclusive assignment is often very wasteful when a request further comprises a number of sequential tasks. When one or more tasks within a request cannot be initiated or completed due to other system constraints, an assigned thread is occupied but not efficiently used, thereby rendering the server inefficient as well. Therefore, it would be desirable to provide processing techniques that are capable of improving the efficiency of a server servicing requests from a client.